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We systematically analyze power requirements of membrane and distillation processes for binary mixtures where the desired product component is more permeable and also more volatile. We first derive a shortcut method to compare the efficiency of heat pump and steam-driven distillations. Then, power requirements of heat pump distillation and membrane separation are discussed. Distillation generally requires lower power when either high component recoveries are needed (at all tested product purities), or high purity product streams with modest recoveries are needed. For high purity products at modest recoveries, membranes have a potential to provide energy benefits for highly enriched feeds, especially those composed of close boiling components. Additionally, when feed concentration is moderate to high and product recovery and purity are modest, membranes are likely to show efficiency gain. For the advantageous distillation scenarios studied, the power was generally lower than the membranes by a factor of two to seven.